


say you mean it

by joshmeatflint



Category: All Time Low, Sleeping With Sirens
Genre: 9/11 based, Gen, idk if this will trigger anyone ???, it shook me, so if it does im sorry, this idea sparked, title probably doesnt really apply, trigger warning right there, we were talking about it in school
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-20
Updated: 2017-05-20
Packaged: 2018-11-02 19:34:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10951272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joshmeatflint/pseuds/joshmeatflint
Summary: never forget





	say you mean it

**Author's Note:**

> okay a few things. im aware neither sleeping with sirens or all time low came from new york and im also aware their ages may have been different, but im putting all of them in highschool.
> 
> okay so the kids in/near ny are:  
> \- alex g.  
> \- jack b.  
> \- matt f.  
> \- jack f.
> 
> the ones away from ny (their birthplaces):  
> \- kellin q.
> 
> alex gaskarth, jack fowler and matt flyzik's dads are cops and jack barakat's dad works in the south tower of the wtc.
> 
> the fresh image of 9 year old jack fowler terrified for his dads life as his unit is dispatched to the scene of the burning world trade center towers are making me go crazy bc i cant put the emotions in words but visually its so **_H E A R T B R E A K I N G_**

**11th September 2001, 8:47 AM, Upper Manhattan, New York City, NY**

Alex was in class when an announcement that all students were to immediately be sent home. His mum is in a hurry when she shows up to pick him up from school with a panicked and terrified look on her face.

"Mum? What's wrong?" He asks when he realises something was wrong.

"I'll explain everything when we get home, okay sweetheart?" She responds somehow gently.

He mumbles an 'okay mum' as she drives off. When they do get to their apartment, the first thing his mum does is switch on the TV as she urges Alex to sit with her. He complies, still confused. The TV screen displayed an image- no, a live recording of the North Tower of the World Trade Center as a jet crashed straight into the side of it. His heart races faster as he realises his dad isn't home.

"W-Where's dad?" He questions, even though he fears the answer.

"His unit was called to the scene, Alex," She replies, and that confirms Alex's suspicions.

He kept his eyes fixed on the screen before him with a sense of impending doom still lingering in his chest.

 

**11th September 2001, 8:50 AM, Medford, Oregon**

In Medford, Oregon, a jet-black haired 15-year-old with the name Kellin Quinn is on the way home from school. His headphones are on and he's lost in John Rzeznik's soft yet raw voice.

His phone buzzes in his pocket, so he takes a look at what was happening. He had accidentally signed up to receive notifications from CNN a few months ago and he didn't know how to unsubscribe, so he just stuck with it. After all, it was pretty entertaining to just say random stuff on the news out loud while he's with his parents.

 **CNN:** _A jet crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. Officials have claimed it to as a suicide mission and terrorist attack._

Kellin felt his blood ran cold. He took off his headphones and left them draped around his shoulders as he quickened his pace to get home.

 

** 11th September 2001, 8:50 AM, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, NY **

Jack Fowler is a mess. For the past half hour, he's been going crazy over the fact that his dad's unit might be called to the scene, much like Alex's. He's stressing everywhere, but he manages to stay calm enough to not worry or agitate his mother further.

His parents are in their room speaking to each other. His mother is furious and wants his dad to not go to the scene as he tries to convince his wife that he has to, all while Jack stays in his room. He's curled up against the wall, knees pressed tightly against his chest and he tries to block out the sounds of the firefighter and police sirens.

As far as Lower Manhattan was from Midtown, every single unit in New York City was called to the scene. There were so many police cars and firetrucks it gave Jack a headache and a panic attack all at once. His breathing became irregular and forced and no one seemed to be coming through his bedroom door to help him. His parents were too caught up in their fight to even take notice that they couldn't hear their 9-year-old son in the living room.

Jack closes his eyes and tries to relax, focusing on his mother and father and the soothing things they'd say to calm him down. A few minutes later, it works, and Jack feels his mind clear up.

He peers out the window. He can see the smoke rising from where he assumed was the North Tower of the World Trade Center. It was a thick, dark cloud of smoke, escalating higher and higher into the air as each second passed. He could see bits of orange, red and yellow in the midst of all the grey smoke. The fire. And hell was it big.

 

**11th September 2001, 8:56 AM, Upper Manhattan, New York City, NY**

No one was coming to get him.

Even though it broke the rule that his homeroom teacher just set a few minutes ago - to not exit the building unless someone has come to pick you up - he did it anyway. He grabbed his best friend Jack Barakat as they shot up from their seats and dashed towards the exit, where they made it out in a matter of seconds.

They find their way out of the school building as they proceeded towards the World Trade Center towers. Jack's mum would definitely kill them if she found out what they did, but curiosity took over as they continued their way.

When they get there, they know they've made a mistake. People on the sidewalks were pointing at the burning section of the tower - floors 93 through 99. There were cops right in front of the main doors, escorting people out of the building. Most of them wore very formal clothes since this was a huge business office anyway.

Jack had just suddenly realised that his dad worked in the World Trade Center, and if he was caught out on the streets while all this was happening, both his parents would be furious and Matt and him.

"Matt," He tugged on the older boy's sleeve. "Matt, let's go. It's dangerous."

"Just stick around a second, see what happens," Matt replies, genuinely curious as to what's happening.

That curiosity killed them. In those few minutes that felt like seconds, a second jet hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center in floors 75 through 85, killing all the passengers on board and the people on those floors. The ground literally shook from the impact as Jack almost lost his balance. Matt helped him to his feet again as a cluster of debris, concrete and shattered glass fell from the air above.

People cried out. They started taking pictures and videos that are going to spread like wildfire soon enough.

 

**11th September 2001, 9:50 AM, Upper Manhattan, New York City, NY**

Jack and Matt have been there for at least an hour now. They saw people jumping out of the tower, committing suicide. They had seen no other way out than death, so they chose to fall to their death instead of enduring a slow, agonising death by being burnt to a crisp. Other than that, another flight had crashed into the western façade of the Pentagon in Washington D.C., killing 59 aboard the plane and 125 military and civilian personnel inside the building. The Port Authority had also restricted access to all the bridges and tunnels in the Upper Manhattan area. People were literally running across the Brooklyn Bridge just to get home. <b>(A/N my teacher's exact words.)</b>

At 9:59 AM, the South Tower collapses.

Jack and Matt saw as the top part of the building all came crashing down at once. Bits of concrete fell through the air as most people started running to avoid debris. Jack and Matt decided to run home because they realised they'd just made an irreversible mistake.

The debris doesn't catch up with them, but an odd, white powder did. It covered their clothes, head to toe along with all the people around them. They were all confused.

The concrete of the World Trade Center had this powder mixed in with it that helped it to not catch fire. It was never meant to be breathed in because of its toxic components which made it deadly at this point of time.

Matt was the first to realise. He told jack to cover his nose and mouth with his shirt or whatever he had to prevent themselves from inhaling the powder. Inhaling a small amount would still be safe, but inhaling a large amount can possibly end in death.

They make it home in one piece. Joy Barakat literally weeps in relief when she sees the two boys walking down the apartment hallway. She doesn't get mad, she doesn't yell, she just hugs them, tells them to clean themselves up, saying, "Thank God you two are safe.".

Neither of them said anything the whole time.

 

**11th September 2001, 10:11 AM, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, NY**

"No," Jack whimpers, his eyes brimming with tears as his dad started to leave the apartment.

He turns around to look at his son. His heart aches at the sight, so he runs back, taking the small boy into his arms, hugging him for what might be the last time.

"I'll be home before you know it," He says.

"Say you mean it," Jack chokes out through his sobs.

His face contorted into- what? Pity? Grief? Guilt?

He promises anyway, even though it was an empty one. "I mean it."

That satisfies Jack for now. He finally does leave and that sends Jack back to his room, isolating himself once again. His mum desperately wants to comfort him, but knowing her son, he'll just push her away.

Exactly 17 minutes after, the North Tower collapses, right above where Jack and Alex's father's units were at.

 

**11th September 2011, 2:43 PM, Lower Manhattan, New York City, NY**

It has been a decade since the horrors of 9/11. The boys have grown quite well now. Jack Barakat and Matt Flyzik still remain the best of friends, though they still have minor PTSD from the whole hour they spent at the scene, now 22 (almost 23) and 25. Bassam Barakat, an employee in the South Tower of the World Trade Center, was killed trying to escape. The fires consumed him, his body was never found. Matt's dad was engulfed by the mass of dust and dirt in the air that it restricted his breathing and suffocated him.

Jack Fowler, now 19, has grown to accept the fact that his father was just trying to protect him from the truth. That day was the last day he'd ever see his father ever again because he died but he died doing what he thought was right. The first few years, Jack didn't understand the concept. Where had his father gone? Did he move? Why hadn't he called? Why wouldn't his mum ever want to talk about him?

It was in his teenage years that he finally understood his dad wasn't coming back. He got so angry at himself for spending so much time thinking and waiting for something that, in the end, was never going to happen. He was so stupid.

But of course. The Five Stages of Grief: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. He's gone through all of them, and now, he's ironically accepted his death as a part of his life.

Alex, a strong-willed, brave, and kind 23-year-old with anxiety, spends his life helping people who were victims or who had family members who were victims of 9/11. He has an apartment in Midtown; though it isn't small or big, he was content with it. So was he with his job. It wasn't too thrilling, and the wage was high enough to provide him with just enough to keep him alive with some extra dollars he could spare.

So as the four boys stand before the names of their fallen family members, they all set a white rose down as a show of respect. They all look at each other, knowing that they've all gone through the same thing and knowing everything's going to be alright for the 4 of them from this moment on.

 

**Author's Note:**

> THIS WAS SO CRINGY AND IT SUCKS OMG KMS
> 
> I KNOW I NEVER MENTIONED KELLIN AGAIN IN THE END LIKE HE WAS JUST THE PART TO PORTRAY THE FACT THAT EVEN PEOPLE OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK WERE ALERTED ABOUT THE ATTACK IM SORRY


End file.
